As Russia entered into the fifth day of the Ukraine invasion, reports about thousands of Russians abandoning their country to avoid enlistment in the military have emerged. The Russians are seeking asylum in the U.S as per the immigration lawyers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the war on Ukraine in a televised address last week. Calling the Ukraine invasion a 'special military operation', Putin said that the decision was made in order to protect people "who have been suffering from abuse and genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years." He also claimed that Moscow does not plan to occupy Ukrainian territories.
Russians Trying to Enter U.S. Via Mexico
Earlier, in a statement issued on Twitter, Ukraine's defence ministry said that it has lifted age restrictions on army recruitment. "Today Ukraine needs everything, All procedures for joining TPO [Territorial Defence Forces] are simplified. Carry only your passport and identification code. There are no age restrictions. If you have problems on the ground, please refer to this official statement," Yuri Galushkin, the commander of Ukraine's territorial defence forces, said in the statement.
The Telegraph reported that thousands of Russians are headed towards U.S. to claim political asylum and avoid getting enlisted to the Russian army.
As per the report there has been a significant increase in the number of Russians being stopped from crossing over from Mexico to the US.
Speaking to the outlet, Ekaterina Mouratova, a Russian-American immigration lawyer based in Miami, said the number of Russians hoping to claim asylum would 'skyrocket'. "We have never been so busy. I have got tons of emails in the last few days - hundreds. They are mostly men between 20 and 55 who are asking if they can get protection from the US if Russia does a mandatory military draft. These people do not want to go to war."
Over 300 Civilians Dead in Ukraine
In a statement issued on Sunday, Ukraine's Interior Ministry said that the unprovoked war has left 352 Ukrainian civilians dead including 14 children. It said an additional 1,684 people, including 116 children, have been wounded. However, the ministry did not reveal the details of the casualties in the Ukraine's armed forces.
According to TASS, the Russian news agency talks between Ukraine and Russia are due to begin on Monday morning near the Belarus border.
The Daily Mail reported that as per the report published by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), Russian army boasts of 280,000 personnel while the combined armed forces totals to around 900,000. It also claimed that Kremlin has 5,934 artillery units compared to Ukraine's 1,962, and 19,783 armoured military vehicles compared to Ukraine's 2,870.
